On Saturday, September 3rd…
We went on our first family-of-five hike! Brother has been wanting to see some real caves, so Charming and I tried to fulfill that wish. After searching the internet, this hike was the nearest caves we could find. Unfortunately, they weren’t the kind you could walk inside and explore which is what Brother wanted the most (although he was fascinated and frightened by the idea all at the same time).
Even though the “caves” weren’t what we’d hoped, we all had a wonderful time enjoying nature. Seeing slugs. And spider webs. Seeing more slugs. Being carried by Mom and Dad. Accidentally stepping on slugs. Using head lamps and flashlights. Walking through tree stumps. Wearing our emergency whistles. And seeing more slugs.
We were especially impressed that Brother hiked almost the entire time (a total of 2 miles) and he carried our first aid kit to boot! It cracked me up to watch Boots kicking back and relaxing on Daddy’s back while eating/snacking/drinking pretty much the entire time. And Baby was a great sport. All he wanted was to be at home sleeping in his bed, but he made the best of sitting in the new Ergo carrier I was testing out.
And speaking of carrying babies… I absolutely loved the Ergo. But my hips did not. :( Actually, it was more like my hips didn’t like the hike (especially the incline parts) or the Ergo. And by the time I hobbled to the van, my whole pelvis felt like jello and both hips reverberated with a deep, pounding ache with every step I took. If it weren’t for the walking stick Charming found for me, he would have had to carry me back to the van. By the end, I had a great love for that little walker that mother nature had provided for me in my time of need.
It was a great time, though! If the weather holds out, Charming may try to take the boys on some more. And hopefully by next year, I’ll be healed and stable enough to try again. I’ll also be smarter– and have a packed “hike bag” full of headlamps, flashlights, whistles, emergency orange bandannas, etc., etc. all ready to grab and go, so I can have peace of mind and convenience without the hassle of gathering and putting away everything from our 72-hour kits each time.
Now without further ado, here is “The Caves Hike”…
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